That combo rocks, Eagler. I got both of them too!
As for the Suncom stuff, my big boss Fd ski bought the combo a while back when his TM gear failed. I think he hated it and returned it.
Personnally, I don't want anything to do with gameport stuff, so I bought USB stuff last July, and the only full USB HOTAS combination right now is the Saitek X36U and the CH Pro Pedals USB.
There are no USB throttles yet from anyone else (we've been waiting for a throttle by CH for more than a year, it was initially due this summer).
Right now the big advantage of the Saitek X36U is the fact that it's seen as one controller by Windows, even though there are two parts (stick and throttle). Both should function properly in any game that only recognizes one controller.
External rudders will be seen as a distinct controller though, and few games can recognize more than one controller. Luckily AH is one.
But thanks to Bob Church of
StickWorks, Saitek X36U users have a driver that allows them to replace the input from the X36U throttle's awkward "rudder rocker" with input from external rudder pedals, be they gameport (TM, CH, SimPed, anything) or USB (CH Pro Pedals USB, the only ones that exist right now).
If you're interested with the Saitek X36U, make sure you check out Ron Hunt's
Saitek X36 USB Help Center.
BTW about CH USB gear. One thing that must be holding them up with the USB gear (we're still waiting on the F16 Fighterstick - the damn F16 Combatstick only has 4-way hat switches -the throttle and the CH plain pedals) is the fact that few games can recognize multiple game controllers. What they must be working on (well I sure hope so), is a unified driver that lets Windows see all CH USB controllers as one, just like Saitek's software sees the X36F stick and X35T throttle from the X36U combo as one controller. There were rumors that it was due for the end of the summer, but CH sensibly never gave a release date. Or the rumor was wrong.
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DrSoya
308 (Polish) Squadron "City of Cracow" RAF
Part of the
Northolt Wing (First Polish Fighter Wing)